Jump to content
Why become a member? ×
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt

Double bass?


kevin_lindsay
 Share

Recommended Posts

[quote name='Bilbo' post='1146226' date='Mar 1 2011, 06:48 PM']Because it doubles the cellos in an orchestra an octave down.[/quote]

But this is not always the case, if you mean doubling the celli as playing the same notes as them. Although in some earlier music in baroque or classical times when the bass would play the continuo it would most certainly double the celli but for more modern composers such as Mahler and Stravinsky the double bass was most certainly playing its own part.

I have always seen it as called double bass because it plays an octave lower than actually written. Theoretically beside every double bass part there should be a small 8 underneath the bass clef to indicate this but i guess it is just became common practice to leave it out as it really probably just confused people...

That is just the way I have taken to understanding it.

Dara

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi

According to Wikipedia, citing: A Brief History of the Double Bass, Lawrence Hurst, Professor of Double Bass, School of Music, Indiana University

"The names contrabass and double bass refer the instrument's range and use in the contra octave below the cello, also called the 16' octave relative to the church organ."

That was my understanding too - it's all about the pitch/range.

The same applies with wind instruments, with the contrabasson/double bassoon sounding octave lower than a bassoon, due to double length of tube (though it's curled up)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='stewartmusic' post='1146743' date='Mar 2 2011, 08:43 AM']But this is not always the case, if you mean doubling the celli as playing the same notes as them. Although [b]in some earlier music in baroque or classical times when the bass would play the continuo it would most certainly double the celli [/b]but for more modern composers such as Mahler and Stravinsky the double bass was most certainly playing its own part.[/quote]

I know it is not the case in later music but early on, when it was christened the double bass, it did :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

[quote name='Blademan_98' post='1146352' date='Mar 1 2011, 08:21 PM']Does that mean an electric bass is more akin to a cello?

(Serious question)

Cheers.[/quote]
They're same pitch as double bass. Bottom string on a cello is C wchih is C on the A string of a bass. (double bass or bass guitar)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='fonzoooroo' post='1161502' date='Mar 14 2011, 10:35 AM']They're same pitch as double bass. Bottom string on a cello is C wchih is C on the A string of a bass. (double bass or bass guitar)[/quote]

And you can get an extension thingy for a double bass that takes it down to C an octave lower.

[url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File%3a%44ouble_bass_C_extension.jpg"]C Extension - picture[/url]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Bilbo' post='1161509' date='Mar 14 2011, 10:44 AM']And you can get an extension thingy for a double bass that takes it down to C and octave lower.

[url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File%3a%44ouble_bass_C_extension.jpg"]C Extension - picture[/url][/quote]
indeed you can.

I think we've all skirted round the big fact here...

The cello is a member of the violin family. (period in history, shape of upper bouts and tuning in 5ths)

The double bass is effectively still a viol which stayed in use in a standardised (much more recently) version of its original form. (presumably due to ease of playing - imagine the stretch required in the left hand if it were tuned in 5ths!)
A bass viol is cello sized, (give or take) - certainly cello pitch. Hence double bass sounds an octave lower than a bass viol.

To get an octave lower than that just gets silly...

[url="http://wn.com/octobass"]http://wn.com/octobass[/url]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...